Sailing Little Boats
by Darth Breezy
Summary: AuthorS: Golden Jedi and DarthBreezy TOGETHER! Leia's in labour. Han's going crazy. And Luke's in the middle. This is an AU, and therefore disregards 90% of the EU, and takes place just before the birth of Leia’s first child and Luke's Second. OCs
1. Chapter 1

**Sailing Little Boats**

**Part One**

Marginally awake, Han Solo felt around for his wife. His sleepy brain fired a warning when he did not find her, as she was hard to miss lately, given the amazing size she had reached in the past few weeks.

The cold in the sheets by him finally woke him up completely.

Worried, he called softly. "Leia?"

A glance to the bedside chrono told him that it was still too early to start the day and since she had resigned as Chief of State it was unlikely that some crisis had dragged her out of the bed.

Jumping quickly to his feet, he inspected the adjoined fresher, finding it as cold and empty as the bed. Maybe some midnight craving for a sweet?

As he padded his way to the kitchen, he found the answer to his questions. The Princess was sitting cross-legged on one of the living room couches.

"Are you alright?" He asked, plopping down by her.

"Yeah..." She answered absentmindedly. Her hand rubbed slightly over the tight skin of her huge belly.

"What are you doing up so early? Did the kids wake you up?"

"Sort of."

The former smuggler raised a brow.

"I've been having contractions," Leia clarified.

Han Solo paled. "How long?"

"A couple of hours." She gave him a small smile.

"HOURS? Why didn't you call me?" He jumped towards the bedroom and Leia could heard him swearing while he jumped trying to get into his trousers and pull his boots on at the same time.

"Han!" She called. "HAN!"

"What?" His head peeked from the bedroom door.

"Calm down and come back here. There's no hurry."

"You sure?" He asked meekly, walking unevenly back with only one boot on.

"I'm sure. Besides," she continued, snuggling into his arms, "do you remember this gadget?" She pointed to the place on her belly where a thin strip of flexible metal was attached.

Han Solo sighed dejectedly. "Right. You sure it's working properly?"

"I'm sure," the Princess smiled tenderly, placing a soft kiss on his cheek. "I've been reading the telemetry all the time," she added, showing him her data pad. "It's been giving the 'all signals normal' message since I woke up... See? Here..."

As she pointed to the place in the screen, the message changed.

The father-to-be swallowed dry. "Uh, sweetheart? What does 'making first EmCall' mean?"

**

Twenty minutes later, a discreet tap was heard at the door. It was the younger Healer, Toa. To Han's relief, he was alone.

"I guess that means everything's OK, huh kid?" Han asked with a forced joviality that he truly didn't feel and then he added as almost an after thought. "Where's Healer Kampher?"

Toa ducked his head in a short bow. "She is going to the Healer's center to prepare them for Milady's arrival. She said the contractions have stopped?"

"Yeah – so it seems…"

"Han?" Leia called from the bedroom, once again placing him on full alert. "Is that the Healer?"

"Is everything alright?" Han Solo asked anxiously, "Do I need to get you to the Healers center, _now_?"

"Do not worry, General..." Toa murmured softly, even as Han cut him off.

"If I hear those words one more time..." The former smuggler scowled.

To his surprise, the young healer laughed. "You have every right to worry, but you do not _need_ to. These things happen; sometimes the body just needs some practice. They will come back, maybe in a couple of hours, maybe tomorrow, maybe in a couple of days. In the meantime..."

"...Try not to worry," Solo recited sarcastically.

"I was going to suggest that you both rest as much as you can, because it is the last you will get in a long time," Toa said gently. "But that would help too. Milady needs to be as relaxed as possible. I will tend to her for now, and then return to the Healing center…"

"Like that's going to be easy," Han muttered darkly under his breath, but he allowed the young Healer to tend to his wife.

To Han, it seemed that the short time would last an age, but he found that the time _after_ the Healer had left, was actually somehow _worse_. It was like being frozen in Carbonite. No time. Dead time. An eternity and an instant all at once. It was only when he heard the familiar chirps of an R2 unit did his spirits rise. Those sounds could only mean one visitor, and Han barely allowed the chime to sound before he had reached the door.

"Luke!" Han cried as opened the door, and he arched an eyebrow as he realized that barring the R2 unit that scooted importantly by, Luke was actually _alone…_

"Where's Nails, Luke?" Han asked, trying to keep his voice light. _I though she'd be here for her friend. After all, she's already been through this before herself!_ "The little gundark is off with Chewie, probably tearing new holes in the shipping lanes."

"Yes, I know. Aubé is at home, resting. She's not well, Han," Luke replied with unexpected shortness, his features briefly flashed with an unusual hardness, and in that instant, Han was uncomfortably aware that his best friend's father had once ruled the Galaxy with a durasteel fist…

The moment passed, and Luke's expression softened as he continued. "How's Leia? Kam said she had a long time to go when she commed."

"She's resting too," Han replied with a nervous chuckle as they made their way to the couch. "Toa must have given her something to calm her – hell, he could have given something to me too, I wouldn't object! I'm more nervous than I was when I finally got around to asking her to marry me!" As if to emphasize this point, he took a large swallow of the brandy that he had left earlier discreetly on the table. "Nails… Aubé, is she going to be all right?"

"Kay'leb is going to stay with her for a while," Luke said softly. "Kam will send an escort to pick him up after I go back," He paused for a moment.

Unsure how to answer, Han opted for the safe route. "Yeah, speaking of which, maybe you wanna go look in on her. I'll start up some lunch – The kid healer said it would be a long day and he made me promise I'll make Leia eat something light. I'll see you in a minute."

Now it was Luke's turn to be surprised. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Han smiled back, some of his old cockiness returning. "I get ya… Sometimes a girl just needs her brother…"

**

Luke tiptoed into the softly lit bedroom. The blinds were partially drawn, letting some of the morning light trough, but not too much as to prevent someone of falling asleep. There was a subtle scent in the air too, something clean and soothing that immediately brought to Luke's mind Aunt Beru's fresh cleaned laundry. Leia's favorite kind of music came out from hidden speakers.

Even at the end of her pregnancy, his sister looked like nothing but a little girl as she lay curled on her side on the giant bed, her long hair bound into a single loose braid.

"Hi," she smiled, opening her big brown eyes. A bit shyly, she patted the coverlet by her side.

"Hi," he smiled back, leaning on the offered spot on the bed but being careful of leaving his boots out of the embroidered bedspread. "How're you feeling?

"Happy. Anxious." She seemed to want to say something else but did not.

"Afraid?" Luke offered.

The Princess shook her head. "No, not really... But I wish..."

Her twin waited for her to finish the sentence. "What?" He prompted.

"I wish my father could be here today. He'd be so happy..."

Luke brushed away a few stray wisps from his sister's brow. "I understand..."

"I mean, I have Han, and you, and Chewie and Aubé and her family, and they all have been so wonderful to me, but..."

"...It's not the same, I know," he finished for her.

Leia's dark eyes met Luke's clear ones, that quiet kind of communication that was only theirs going through effortlessly.

"One of the first things that went through my mind when I met Pem – I mean, after I got over the shock of course – was how sorry I was that Aunt Beru wasn't here to meet her. She would have loved her so much!" Luke's larynx bobbed and his eyes grew misty.

"Funny, how even after all these years, huh?" He finished with a wry smile.

"I'm glad you're here, Luke..." his twin whispered, caressing softly his cheek. "I mean, I know you really want to be with Aubé…"

"Kay'leb is with her now," Luke said softly.

"Did she need a Healer?" Leia started, causing Luke to chuckle wryly. "What's so funny, Luke?"

"No, it's not that," Luke assured her with a sad smile. "I just think it's funny that even in the throws of your own birth pains, your first concern is other people..."

Liea sighed, exasperated. "C'mon, Luke! I have enough of that with Han and Threepio! Chewie seems to be one of the few people left around here with even a fragment of common sense! This is a piece of cake compared to..."

Luke grimaced, remembering what she had been through in the past. Thankfully, Leia noticed his worry and finished her sentence with an impish wink. "... Compared to listening to Borsk Fey'lya's speeches! You were saying about Aubé?"

Luke offered her a sad smile. Another question evaded. "I was just thinking about what an old friend told me. "She didn't need a _Healer_… just her _brother…_

**

Luke reemerged from the bedroom nearly half an hour later, and it was apparent that he was anxious to be gone, but Han knew that Luke was _also_ anxious to say something – he didn't have to be a Jedi to see that.

"Kid… Luke…" Han said with remarkable gentleness. "What's wrong with Aubé, really?"

By the expression on Luke's face, Han felt as if he'd crossed some invisible line, one that hadn't been there before and one of many that had appeared since Luke had discovered his true heritage and his other _family_, but unlike the others, he wasn't going to let this one pass. "Talk to me…"

Luke hesitated, and then sat down heavily on the couch once again. To Han's eyes, he seemed to have aged many years in that instant. "Twins…" he sighed.

"Twins?" The Corellian's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Pem was also a twin, Han," Luke said softly. "Tam – that was her brother's name, Tamillen - died when he was about three…"

Han sucked in his breath with a hiss. "What? Why...?" The hardened Corellian rubbed his face, not finding the words to express his true feelings. It did not matter how he died or why his brother-in-law had never mentioned him. That explained so many things...

Awkwardly, he squeezed his friend's shoulder and cleared his throat. "I'm sorry, Luke," he offered softly.

The younger man accepted it with a sharp nod of his head.

"D'ya think that Leia's... _our_ babies are in any danger?" Han rasped at last.

To Han's relief, Luke shook his head adamantly. "No, but she _is_ afraid, Han. Do you remember the attack by the Citizens to Reinstate the Empire?"

"The _CRE_?" Han snorted. "How in the Seven Hells could I forget? Leia nearly killed, Mito hanging over the edge of that pod, the attack on you and Aubé… Yeah, almost seemed like old times!"

Luke remained grim. "We almost lost the baby then, Han. She was… well, let's just say it wasn't an easy time. Then we lost her father…" He paused, choosing his words carefully. "Kampher and Kay'leb agree – and Aubé herself knows – that it's partly the changes her body is going through, but still, just don't judge her too harshly, Han. OK?"

**

After Luke left, once again the morning crawled by and yet Leia was getting more restless by the minute. By midday, Chewie had stopped for a short visit and lunch with Pem and then they had once again headed to parts unknown – at least for the afternoon. Han managed to make the Princess eat a light meal and then he convinced her to lay down again for a nap. Of course, he was snoring before she even closed her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Part 2**

"Wake up," Kay'leb murmured, poking his sister with his walking stick. "Come on, sis, if you don't get out of that bed soon, people are going to think Luke traded his wife in for a Hutt…"

"Go away, Kay," Aubé groaned, pulling the covers over her head. "If you're just here to give me – "

"Now now, Aubé…" Kay'leb cut her off with another poke of the walking stick. "That's not a nice thing to say! You don't want your son to hear things like that!"

"Kay'leb Canaille, I am _so_ warning you…"

"Or you'll what?" Kay'leb pressed. "Try to hit me with a blaster shot? Dear sister, I'm as blind as a moon bat, and probably have better aim than you do these days!"

Aubé rolled over to face her erstwhile tormenter, snapping brown eyes meeting sightless white. "Kay, I _know_ what you're trying to do, and honestly I don't give a mynock's acid dropping! Healer or no, blind or not, I can still – and will – kick your tail into the Rishi Maze _if you don't shut up!_"

"You couldn't hit the light side of a planet with a Star Cruiser, you've gone so soft!" Kay'leb mocked, although he noticeably took a few steps back. "Come on, then!"

Now Aubé was angry – too angry to feel her brother's gentle examination through the Force as he made sure that although she was _emotionally_ riled up, that physically she and her unborn son were fine – and with great effort she pushed herself into a sitting position on the side of the bed. "Shouldn't you be making yourself useful with Leia?" She grumbled. "Luke said they would be taking her to the Healer's center soon..."

Kay'leb closed his eyes in the momentary truce, and once again reached into the Force. "_They_ don't need me just yet," he replied softly. "_You,_ however…"

"Is something wrong?" Her eyes widened, fear now taking the place of anger. "Kay – my baby – "

"Is fine," Kay'leb finished for her. "But you, dear sister, need a swift kick in the bloodstripes."

Aubé's eyes narrowed. "What in the Seven Hells do you mean?"

Carefully, Kay'leb made his way to the bed and sat down next to his sister. "You know perfectly well what I mean, Bé," he said with sudden gentleness. "You've been in a pretty low place – too low for even Luke and Pem to pull you out of – ever since Pappa died… and before."

"Luke understands…" Aubé muttered under her breath, but it was a lie and they both knew it.

Kay'leb placed a rough arm around his sister's diminished waist. "Not everything, dear sister," he corrected her gently. "You never told him about… you know…"

"That I asked you about ending the first pregnancy, when I first found out?" Aubé said bitterly, wiping away the tears glistening in her eyes. "That I was more afraid then I am now? Of course not…"

"And why not?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "I guess in part because it's in the past, and I can't change that…."

"And?" Kay'leb let the question hang there, knowing that Aubé would answer only if she was ready.

After a long pause, she did. "I thought he would hate me for it," she said at last. "I didn't think he would… understand."

"Like Pappa…"

"He was so angry," Aubé sighed. "I mean, furious… at least at first."

"And then he cried, do you remember that, Aubé?" Kay'leb murmured, pulling her close. "He wouldn't tell us _why,_ just asked you to go think about it for a few days, and to remember that either choice was irreversible… it was the only time I actually remember _mother_ being angry with him, at least in front of us."

"She told me to go meditate on it. That it was _my_ choice, ultimately… I went to the old fort by the sea, and just… _listened_." Aubé lay her head onto her brother's shoulder. "I never knew that four years later I would be mourning my son there…"

"And you've never _stopped_…" Kay'leb finished for her, kissing her cheek with infinite tenderness. "Bé, _you need to let him go_…"

"And act like he never existed?" Aubé said sharply, pulling away from her brother. "Kay'leb! How could you say such a thing?"

"Of course not, you silly grasser," Kay'leb soothed, pulling her close once again. "But dear sweet Aubé, even Luke will tell you that you need to learn to _let go_… for his sake, for _their_ sake…"

"I don't know _how_ to, Kay." Aubé sighed, "And I don't…"

"Walk with me, sis," Kay'leb said at once. "We've got time before Luke's sister will need me…"

"But what about Luke?" said Aubé. "He'll be worried – well, more than he is now – we should at least leave word."

"I'll com him while you get dressed," Kay'leb replied with a wink. "Unless you want me to walk you through the streets of Coruscant wearing only your good intentions?"

A smack, much gentler than the one she had wanted to give him only a short time before. "Go on – I'll be ready in a few minutes – I want to wash first."

Kay'leb smiled, and taking his walking stick in hand, made his way to the bedroom door where he paused. "Bé ?" He called. "Be sure to wear something extra nice…."

A loud banging woke Han up.

"General Solo, General Solo!" The worried voice of See-Threepio called. The droid had learned the hard way that he should never trespass into their masters' sanctuary without express consent from them after narrowly avoiding a blaster shot from a certain irate Corellian in the early days of their marriage.

"What's up, Goldenrod?"

"It's Mistress Leia, General, she's behaving in the most unusual..."

Another loud banging interrupted the droid. Ignoring Threepio, Han hurried to the the door, his eyes doubled in size with the scene exposed before them. On all fours, his wife, the High Princess of Alderaan and former Senator – twice - and Chief of State of the New Republic was emptying and cleaning the cabinets under the sink. By hand.

"Sweetheart? What are you doing?" He asked carefully.

"What does it look like?" She growled.

"I know what it looks like... But why?"

"I swear I saw a bug hide in here..."

"Bug?" She had never been afraid of bugs. In fact, that time they had gone for a Diplomatic function to Ad'Fragun, he had seen her take an insect as long as half her palm out of her plate and keep eating as if nothing had happened.

"Yes, a bug!"

The chiming of the com interrupted this interesting subject. Healer Kampher was on the other end. "How is she doing?" The older woman asked, not waiting for answer. "Is she breathing as I taught her?"

"What?"

A warm chuckle answered him, almost as a gentle reminder that she has seen this scenario played out a thousand times before. "She's been having strong contractions every five minutes for the last half an hour, didn't she tell you? I think it's time for you to get that speeder, General Solo."

**

At their destination, construction workers, curious tourist and locals of the core, and the occasional probable Jedi Knight – only another Force sensitive would have been able to pick them out through the throng, as they weaved and danced through the masses like flickers of candlelight in a dark room – despite the lateness of the afternoon, the area was still bustling with the activity of a hundred beings, and yet they gave the pair a wide berth, as if Kay'leb's walking stick generated a shield around them. For this, Aubé was profoundly grateful.

"Kay, what are we doing _here_?" she asked, unconsciously stroking her belly. Since their arrival at the Jedi Temple, her unborn baby had instigated a flurry of activity, performing hereto unknown gymnastics in what had become very tight quarters. She grimaced. "I'm going to need a fresher in a moment…"

"Again?" Kay'leb flashed her a grin, but kept puling her forward as they climbed the steps of the main entrance. "I'm sure there's one inside."

"Right by the door I hope," Aubé sighed as small hands and feet began to beat a tattoo on her bladder. "I swear, until this baby is born, I'm not drinking so much as another _drop_ of water!" Gamely, she made her way up the stairs, only pausing at the entrance. "Are you sure you want to go in here? I mean…. Is it… well, _safe_ for you?"

Blank eyes looked at her with marked curiosity. "What do you mean, sis? Is it because this is where I had my accident? Pappa and Luke and the others have been coming here for months, and _they_ said it's all right – "

"I know," she replied, fully aware that her brother could sense her unease. The Temple had been the place where her brother had been seduced by _something_ dark that had lain in wait, that something had cost him his sight and nearly the lives of her father, Luke and herself. Luke had assured her that it was different now. Cleansed and pure, but she was still afraid.

"You shouldn't be, Bé," Kay'leb said gently, as if reading her thoughts. "It's been nearly nine years, and Pappa worked so very hard to help bring Luke's vision of the new Temple to life… come and _see…_

**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sailing Little Boats – chapter 3**

After a cursory security check – for the Temple was still not open to _regular_ visitors yet – and while Aubé dashed into the refresher Kay'leb closed his eyes and reached out for Toa, his apprentice and life partner, to check on the Princess. Even for Jedi, their bond was an unusual one for through it, Kay'leb could actually _see_ the Healer's center and all it's surroundings, including the Princess herself as she arrived. After assuring Toa that he would be back long before he himself was actually needed, Kay'leb turned his perception to his immediate surroundings.

The Force sang and danced all around him here, like a living thing unto itself, and although Kay'leb's memories of his first visit to the Temple were hazy at best, his late father Schurke had regaled the family with stories while Luke had quietly discussed his plans on how to bring it back to life. Some of the Elder Jedi Masters had been visibly displeased and while others had fully embraced the idea, and now, less than a few weeks away those plans would finally be brought to fruition…

His thoughts were interrupted by the return of his sister, who was adjusting her tunic and cloak and perhaps anxious to be gone, until she paused, seeing the look of pure joy on her brother's face.

"What is it?" Aubé asked.

Kay'leb only smiled, and turned her to look into the Grand Foyer and beyond, and in that instant; Aubé finally realized the truth about the legacy they had been born into.

"Oh, by the stars…" she gasped. "Kay, it's… _wonderful_…"

**

Toa and a small assembly of administrative aids were waiting for the Solo's speeder as they arrived into a private landing pad at the med-center, Threepio in the back with Leia's baggage.

"Princess, we're honored to..." one of the bureaucrats started.

"Cut it, kid and just grab the bag, would you?" Han Solo interrupted, helping his wife out of the speeder. "I wanna get the Princess inside before the holo-shills know we're here. We don't want the circus going right now."

"As you wish, General."

"How are you feeling, Milady?" The young healer asked, as he guided the couple towards the facility where Master Kampher and the rest of her team were getting everything ready. "Do you require additional assistance?"

"I'm _fine, _Healer Toa," Leia Organa Solo shook her head, as she waddled heavily at her husband's side. "Although I feel like the hybrid of a Hutt and a Star Destroyer..."

"... with a cleaning compulsion..." Han quipped nervously, automatically dodging the inevitable elbow to his ribs all the while scouting the skies for the inevitable press scouts. "We should have used Winter's suggestion of a decoy…" But the expected jab never came.

"You said the pains stopped, Milady?" Toa asked mildly, unmindful of the commotion surrounding them, and it seemed his very presence had a soothing effect on the Princess. "It is to be expected – "

See-Threepio bounced helplessly against Han Solo's back when he stopped dead in his tracks. "AGAIN?" He gasped.

"Madam!" one of the other bureaucrats burst in excitedly. "We have a full team of Medi-droids and resident physicians on call..."

"That won't be needed, at this time," a strong female voice cut across the throng, a smile belying her no nonsense tone. Kampher Canaille, Master Healer and Luke's mother-in-law stood at the doorway, waiting. "Come in, family Solo, for this is where your great adventure begins…"

**

In sharp contrast to the chaos _outside_, the activity within the Temple was more structured, more organized. Work crews and cleaning droids were putting the last touches on signage in a hundred different languages, which would direct visitors to different areas of the structure. Light streamed through crystal windows, despite the temporary dust cloth coverings, and everywhere, there were places to sit, to take in the revitalized splendor of it all – places just to _be…_

Aubé stood there, mouth agape, while Kay'leb stood at her elbow, grinning.

"Amazing, isn't it?" he said softly. "There's a state of the art Healer's center that will surpass the one we have on Corellia, enough information in the archives to keep a thousand scholars busy for a hundred years – maybe even longer… An agricultural center that will has the potential to feed half the city – and teach others to feed themselves…"

"But Kay," Aubé interrupted him suddenly. "What you're talking about… even if every Jedi in the Galaxy came back – "

"But that's the beauty of it, sis," Kay'leb murmured. "Don't you see? It will be open to _everyone_! Well, most of the Temple anyway – parts of it will still be limited to 'Jedi' access only, but the general public won't even be aware of those places. There's even a separate entrance, somewhere around here, I think..."

"I'm sure there is," Aubé acquiesced quietly, and then her eyes brightened, and she gasped as an old friend came towards them, arms open in greeting. The older torgruta Healer had trained under Kampher during the early days of their childhood, and had been involved in the Canaille's life sporadically ever since. Behind her, dressed in traditional Apprentice robes, a young human boy hung back shyly.

"Gi? Is it really you?" Aubé cried fairly stumbling into her embrace. "I haven't seen you since before… Well, you know… since Pappa died…"

"May the Force be with him, yes," Gi sighed, placing a clawed hand on each of the Canaille children's faces. "Proud of you both, he would be," she said with a smile. "Proud of you all! The little one – arrive soon he will?"

"Not soon enough," Aubé grimaced, placing her hand reassuringly on her belly, then turning her attention to the young man standing quietly behind, even as Kay'leb knelt before him. "When did you take on an apprentice?"

"Not long," Gi started, but stopped mid-sentence as she and Aubé turned their attention to the boy and his reaction to Kay'leb. With the exception of Pemberian, many children seemed to be afraid of the young Healer, especially his milk white eyes and scarred features, but the young boy seemed actually drawn to him.

"What's your name, little one?" Kay'leb asked with infinite gentleness, wiping away a sudden tear from the boy's eye. "For one so young, you are strong in the Force…"

"Nico," he said softly. "Master Gi takes care of me since my Aunt died."

The little boy had blond hair and blue eyes that sparkled with unshed tears. "She died a little while ago and I miss her, still…"

"How old are you, Nico?"

"I'm ten, nearly eleven standard years old, but Master Gi thinks I'll make a good Healer someday." A small smile brushed his lips. "She's been letting me help out in the new Healer's center already."

"Have you seen the rest of the Temple yet?" Kay'leb continued. "Do you know where the Fountain room is?"

The little boy brightened. "Yes, sir!" he exclaimed. "I like to go there a lot! They have a place to light candles, and set them sailing in the lake – it's so pretty and peaceful there!"

"Well," Kay'leb placed his hand on his chin, in an exaggerated gesture of thoughtfulness. "Perhaps you would be good enough to show my it to my sister, while your Master takes me to the Healer's center? I need to get a few things for my _other_ very important patient…" He winked at Aubé who only looked puzzled.

"I'd like that, very much," Nico whispered softly. "She looks a lot like my mom…"

"Walk..." Han Solo grumbled. "Couldn't we have walked at home?" He complained as they finished their eighth turn around the inner courtyard of the Healer's Center.

"How would I know they would stop?" The Princess retorted annoyed.

"I don't know... This is not the way it works in the holos!" He remarked dejectedly as he held the door to their suite open for her.

Leia Organa tried to place her hands at her nonexistent waist, then gave up and crossed her arms over the huge mound of her belly. "What, you thought they would just pop out? Didn't you read all those books I gave you?"

Her husband gave her a horrified look. "By K'ira, no! They were creepy..."

Oblivious to the audience of healers, the Princess raised her voice. "Creepy? Do you think that me giving birth to YOUR children is creepy?" Jabbing her index into Han's chest, she added. "You didn't think it was creepy when we were... starting this!"

"C'mon, you know I didn't mean it that way, Princess..." He pleaded, stumbling backwards again into the corridor. Suddenly he turned around and walked away.

"Wait, where are you going?" She asked, but he only turned his head enough to signal her to remain quiet. Drawing his DL-44, Solo tiptoed back to one of the windows opened to the courtyard.

"Gotcha!" He shouted happily as he discharged the weapon against something outside. "Spy droid," he explained smugly as he reholstered the blaster. "Damn things are worse than …" he trailed off, noticing his wife's blanched face. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Nothing too major," she gasped, "but Han, I think my water just broke…"


	4. Chapter 4

**Sailing Little Boats**

Part 4

After a quick cryptic com call from Kay'leb to tell her that he was on his way to the Senate Healer's ward, Nico and Aubé walked through the Temple. With his small hand he lead her along. Guiding her past tempting corridors and entry ways, they walked along in silence until at last, they reached the great open expanse that was the Room of a Thousand Fountains. To Aubé's surprise, mixed among the myriad of construction crews and the occasional Jedi – identifiable only by the strong Force signature – there was another small group of visitors being guided around by someone she recognized as one of her mother's newest apprentices. Some of the visitors seemed to have brought their families with them, as many children could be seen among them.

"That's the group from the Kuati Embassy," Nico broke in as if reading her thoughts. "Master Gi says most of these people only came because they want to be able to tell their friends that they got to see it first, before it _officially_ opened," he sighed. "But she says Master Skywalker doesn't mind, that he thinks that maybe they might even take something else back with them…"

Aubé cast her eyes about the room, "Speaking of Luke," she murmured. "I know he's here, but just exactly where…." She bit her lower lip in consternation, and with painful realization, she found that she was reluctant to press the bond that existed between them. She felt a barely perceptible squeeze of her hand, as if to reassure her that all would be right, if she would only trust in the Force, and she smiled.

They would find him, soon enough, but for now she only wanted to really take in the wonders that had been brought forth in part by her husband's love for his heritage, and his family, and perhaps even her own.

**

Han Solo ground his teeth as he waited for the caf machine to finish brewing a fresh pot of the fragrant beverage. The facilities the med-center had designated for the former Chief of State Organa-Solo looked more like an expensive hotel suite than anything else. It included, besides the delivery room that Leia was currently in, a large lounge for visitors with all the usual amenities, holo-net, a small kitchenette and an extra room and fresher for him to rest, or change cloths if he wanted to.

_As if._

Even if the suite had everything they would need in the next couple of days, every fifteen minutes one attendant would drop in and ask if he was in need of something or other.

"Yes," he had growled to the last one, a tiny young woman with an outer rim accent. "A little peace and privacy would be wonderful," he barked lowly, baring his teeth.

He regretted it now, knowing that the girl was only following the orders from her obnoxious superiors. It was moments like this when he missed Winter the most, she had a gift to deal with this kind of situation and arrange what was best for Leia and him even before they noticed it. He knew the success of his marriage had been at least partially because of her and he was eternally in debt to the woman for that. It was a shame she would not be here to share this moment with her friend, but when she had called to check on Leia from Naboo, where she was spending a few well deserved days of leave with Tycho, she had said that she would board the next available transport to Coruscant. But even the _Falcon_ would need more than twelve hours to travel the space lanes between the two planets so he was not expecting her until the next day.

The brewing machine ended its cycle with a soft beep and he poured himself a cup of dark caf. Chewie was calling every half hour or so for updates, offering each time to go and keep him company, but he had refused every time, knowing his partner's dislike of med-centers in general and of this one in particular, where old prejudices and regulations from Palpatine's time had taken deep root and all non-humans were regarded as walking reservoirs of alien bacteria, despite the newly infused Jedi influence.

He glanced back through the opened door to the delivery room, where he could see a glimpse of Leia's sweaty forehead. The blind Jedi, Kay'leb, was speaking to her quietly and she nodded in response every now and then.

The former smuggler felt so powerless, wishing he just had a few other spy-droids at hand to shoot at.

They had stood together through so many things, Leia and him. They had survived Vader's torture, Jabba, squadrons of stormtroopers. They had defied society's conventions by getting married and worse, they had beaten all the odds by staying that way. They had faced together the political nightmare of the New Republic and won. They had survived shootings, bombings, carbonite, everything. They had cried together when they realized that their chances of having a child of their own was slipping through their fingers with each miscarriage. And yet, a miracle had happened.

When they had discovered that the Princess was coursing a healthy pregnancy after almost ten years since they had been bonded, he had felt like if nothing could ever destroy the happiness he was feeling then. And he had not imagined that that same miracle would bring him so much worry and fear as he was feeling now.

Leia, being Leia, had of course worried about her unborn babies right from the start and for the first time in many years he had not been able to breach through the barrier her fears had set between them. The fact that she was the Chief of State of the New Republic at the time and that her brother had reappeared suddenly after a long absence with a pregnant wife and another grown up kid in tow had not helped things either, only adding reasons for her being stressed out of her mind.

It had been only after the Jedi healers had stepped in that she had started to regain her center, to become more confident in herself and her ability to carry the pregnancy to a successful ending. Her trust in them had grown so much in the past weeks that she had even decided to dismiss her regular med-staff, something that had caused quite a bit of a scandal in the holo-shills.

A ragged moan came from the other room and his insides twisted in a knot, the cup of caf that had cooled down without being drunk shaking in his hand.

Kay'leb had arrived all by himself a couple of hours before, a little after Leia's water had broken. That had been when he had started to feel that Leia was again slipping away from him. It was not that he did not trust the Corellian Jedi team of healers. Not exactly. He liked the kid Toa well enough, and although the idea that Master Kampher had been friends with Anakin Skywalker was a bit unsettling, she was Nail's mother after all and Luke seemed to trust her completely. But the other one... Kay'leb Canaille simply gave him the creeps.

With his milky white blind eyes and his quirky ways, Han had the impression the guy could still see right through him and was laughing at some secret joke he would only share with the other Jedi. And he did not like that at all. What young Toa had seen in him to become his apprentice and partner was beyond his imagination, but he would not be surprised if the Corellian still wielded a touch of darkness behind everybody's back. He had voiced his opinion at some point but after a heated discussion with Leia - who did not share his impression in the slightest, for who was he after all to contradict her, her brother, his Jedi wife and all her extended family? Just the Force-blind guy who happened to be Leia's children's father. He had let the subject drop then, but sometimes he wondered.

He stared at the com-link, sitting mutely on the counter, and he realized that he hadn't heard from Luke since that morning – no one had…

Yes, he wondered about that too. These days, Han wondered about a lot of things…

Another moan came from the delivery room and Han wondered how much of this he could stand. And it was just the first baby.

**

"Ma-mere!" an excited voice echoed from across the cavernous expanse. "Ma-mere! You came!" Pemberian Skywalker waved franticly from her father's lap, her long dark hair pulled back in a plait, emulating her aunt Leia. Even from this distance, Aubé could hear Luke gently admonishing her. As always, his voice wasn't loud, but firm, and Pemberian only momentarily chastised, bowed her head in consternation before fairly leaping off of his lap and madly dashing into the arms of her mother.

Ignoring Aubé's erstwhile escort, Pemberian gently wrapped her arms around her mother's neck, and drew close to her ear.

"Have you come to cheer up Pay-pa?" she asked earnestly. "He's all sad about Auntie Leia. "

Aubé's eyes grew wide. "Is there something wrong, Pem? I thought Mother and Toa were already waiting for her at the Healer's center, just in case – "

"No, not that," Pemberian replied, screwing up her face in consternation. "He just doesn't think he would be wanted there – that it's just supposed to be her and Uncle Han and it makes him sad." Here she paused, suddenly biting her lip with worry. "You won't tell him I told you, will you Ma-mere?" She whispered. "I know I'm not supposed to peek, but I couldn't help it!"

"It'll be our secret, I promise," Aubé replied as she gently extricated herself from her daughter's embrace. "Why don't you and Nico go and see if there are any sun fish in the fountain? I think I saw a place to get some pellets to feed them as we came in, and I'll go talk to your Pay-pa…"

"Oh yes please!" Pem replied happily, turning to really see her mother's companion for the first time. Suddenly, her mouth formed a tiny 'o', and she blushed to the roots of her dark curly hair, and in that moment Aubé saw the first pangs of baby love flashing in her daughter's eyes. "Yes… please…" she repeated softly. "I'd really like that…"

As Aubé watched Nico and his starry-eyed companion wander over to the pellet dispenser, she tentatively touched on the bond she and Luke shared. What she found broke her heart a little. Although he had shielded himself – and she made a mental note to warn Luke that their daughter was far more gifted then either of them had thought – which was unusual in and of itself, she found far more sadness than even Pem had picked up on.

Worse still, she knew in her heart that his pain was due in part to _herself_...

_Oh Luke,_ she thought. _I'm so sorry…_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Is anything wrong, Sir?" A cultured voice asked, startling Han Solo.

"Shouldn't I be asking that?"

"Maybe. But that is not the case, it seems..."

The former smuggler sighed. "Can't you tell, Toa?"

The Dathomirian shrugged. "As you requested, Sir, no more Jedi _whammies_..."

The older man snorted, trying to disguise his amusement, and invited the healer to sit on the couch next to him with a gesture. "Ya're hopeless, Kid..."

"I know that, Sir," the young Jedi answered with a bright smile that faded slowly as he tackled the issue that had brought him out of the delivery room. "May I ask why are you not with Milady, Sir?"

Solo left the cold cup of caf on the counter and shook his head. "You wouldn't understand, Toa."

"You would be surprised."

There was so much certainty in the Jedi's calm words that Han lifted his eyes, startled. He dropped them again immediately and noticed for the first time the strange scar the man had on his left forearm. Toa had changed the traditional Jedi robes he usually wore for a disposable sterile outfit that left his arms exposed. The angry mark of a deep burning that had never been treated with bacta could not completely hide the fact that there had been a Dathomirian tribal tattoo in that place once.

"She doesn't need me in there," he blurted, to his own surprise.

"You are wrong, Han." Toa said gently. "You will see. Very soon, I think..."

A double shout from the other room startled both men.

"HAN!" Leia screamed.

"Toa, now!" Kay'leb's voice called urgently.

**

"Luke," Aubé called softly. "I hope I'm not disturbing you." The smile that had greeted her became a look of concern as she visibly grimaced. "It's all right," she continued with more bravado than she felt. "He's been hammering away since Kay and I stepped into the Temple…"

"Do you need a Healer?" Luke said without preamble. "There are a few of them here already, trying to get things in order." He sighed, turning his sights to the distance. "I can't believe how much damage was done, especially there…" His voice was oddly cool, as if he were trying to distance himself or ready himself for an emotional blow, but Aubé could feel, if not hear his very thoughts.

_Is this it, Aubé? Have you come to say goodbye in person this time? That you want to take Pem and our son back to Corellia, and to a normal, sane life? I'm sorry it hasn't turned out the way we'd hoped, I'm sorry I disappointed you and Master Kampher, and Leia… I'm sorry for everything…_

She wanted to scream, and cry. She wanted to scoop Pemberian into her arms and run far away. She wanted to throw herself upon him – whether with fist flying or into a passionate embrace, she wasn't sure which – but something, anything to stop the feelings and thoughts from becoming words. From becoming… there.

In that instant, perhaps only moments before what was said or done could be un-done, she embraced her true heritage, and reacted as generations before her had, not thinking, only _acting_…

As a Jedi…

**

The first thing Han noticed was the sheer absence of people in the room. What had been a teeming mass of technicians, medics (both droid and human) had been reduced to three. Leia, laying prone with Master Kampher at her head, wiping her face and gently whispering words of encouragement, and her son the Healer, Kay'leb, leaning in between his wife's legs.

_Where in the seven Hells..._ Han thought only to have the thought shrivel away under the cool sightless stare of the Healer.

"This is a _birth_, General Solo," the Healer said dryly, "not a _circus_. I _dismissed_ them. If you would be so kind as to wash you hands, your daughter's arrival is imminent..."

"But I thought _you_ were the damned Healer!" Han snapped, and only Toa's gentle restraining touch kept him from leaping forward. "What do you want _me_ to do?"

"Unless you want a _blind_ man to guide your daughter's entrance into the world, General, I want you to stand where I am, so I can concentrate on your son – "

Leia broke in, anxiously. "Healer Kay'leb? Is there something wrong?" she gasped. "Please don't let anything happen to my babies!"

"_Relax, Milady_," Kay'leb called soothingly, waving his hand in her direction. "_Everything is fine..._

"Everything's fine..." Leia echoed dreamily, sinking back into the cushions. "Everything's.... fine..."

An angry retort died on Han's lips, as out of the corner of his eye, he saw Toa shaking his head. _Not now,_ the gesture seemed to say. With thin lips and a curt nod, Han turned his attention back to the Healer.

"Whadd'ya want me to do?"

"Come here and get ready," Kay'leb said, a wry smile crossing his face. "Toa will guide you."

"Ready? Ready for _what?_"

The smile became a grin. "Anything..."

**

Among the few being that witness the reunion, one of the elder Jedi sniffed inwardly. Such outward displays were _unbecoming_ of the self styled Master of the New Order and his student-come-companion, but others among them knew that they were witnessing a very private, eventful turn of fate.

She had kissed him.

One simple kiss that allayed a thousand of Luke's fears and doubts and that conveyed more than assurance and love. It said in more way than words would allow, _I am here, always…_

**

Watching from a distance, Pemberian absently took Nico's hand.

"My Ma-mere and Pay-Pa need to be alone for a while I think," she whispered to him shyly. "Do you think Master Gi will let you show me around some more?"

"Master Gi is very busy," Nico replied in a voice that Pemberian would hear in her dreams for many years. "I'm sure that she will not mind at all."

He smiled at her now, really and fully, making Pem blush ever so slightly. "In fact, I'd like that too."

Pemberian waved to her parents, and then held up three fingers, effectively asking for three hours, and wrinkled her nose as Aubé mouthed back _one_.

She turned her silent attention with pleading eyes to her father, who grinned and shook his head. _Not my call,_ the gesture said. Back to her mother…

_Two and a half?_

Aubé conversed quietly with Luke, and remembering her promise not to 'peek' anymore, Pem shifted from foot to foot anxiously.

At last, the answer came.

Knowing she had been utterly manipulated, Aubé bit back a smile and held up two fingers, then drew them across her neck. _Two, take it or leave it._

"Come on," Pem whispered to Nico. "Before Ma-mere changes her mind!"

She threw her parents a quick 'thumbs up'

"Lead the way, Miss Skywalker," Nico replied shyly. Her hand felt warm and soft in his, and he found that he suddenly had jumble-bugs in his stomach. He felt decidedly uncomfortable.

But he didn't want to take his hand away… at least, not quite yet…

"You'd better just call me Pem," she corrected him gently, and carefully shielding her thoughts, she added inwardly, _if you want to be my boyfriend someday, that is…_

"Let's go…"

**

"Han is going to be jealous," Aubé murmured as she rested her head in the crook of Luke's throat as his hand rested on her belly. "Our little girl is growing up..."

Luke grunted non- commitedly, pretending to be more focused on the thrumming activity beneath his fingertips. He didn't want to talk about Han or Leia – not just yet, anyway. "How long has he been this busy?" he asked.

"Since we stepped foot on the steps," Aubé sighed. "Let's go for a walk, I'm feeling restless…"

Luke arched an inquisitive eyebrow as he rose. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Aubé grunted. "Pem will be fine, and to be honest, I sure could use a drink and a 'fresher..."

Luke bowed deeply, and when he rose, his blue eyes now sparkling with bemusement, locked on hers. "As you wish, M'lady," he said with a smile that lit up his face. "A drink, and walk and a 'fresher for my lovely wife and son…"

"Fresher first," Aubé corrected him. "By the Force, I need to find one!"

Smiling now, Luke took her hand and helping her up, he pulled her close. "I'm sure I can help you with that," he whispered, nuzzling her ear affectionately. "And maybe a few other things…"

"Foot rubs?" Aubé asked playfully. "Are you telling me there's a place in here where I can get a foot rub?"

He laughed, genuinely and heartily. "From a genuine Master," he promised.

She joined in his laughter as they walked away, and so intent were they on each other, that neither of them noticed the fact that Aubé's comm had fallen out of her pocket, and was blinking urgently…


	6. Chapter 6

**Sailing Little Boats**

Chapter 6

With a lurching _*thump*_, the turbo-lift came to a sudden jolting halt, throwing Aubé unceremoniously into Luke's arms.

"Are you all right?" Luke asked as he steadied her. "Sorry about that, it'll start up again in a moment…"

"Yes, thanks," Aubé murmured with a sigh, settling comfortably into his embrace. "Been a while since you've held me like this."

"Been a while since you've _let me _," Luke mumbled, then immediately added, "I'm sorry. You didn't deserve that –"

"Yes I did," Aubé corrected him, casting her eyes downward. "I've been unforgivably… selfish."

"You've had a lot to cope with, and on your own for the most part," Luke replied, absently reaching for the control panel, even as the lift began it's steady climb upward once again. "I should have been there…"

"_They_ needed you," Aubé reminded him gently. "The Republic, the Galaxy… they always will. I knew that from the start, Luke…"

"_Pem_ needed me, _Tam_ needed me…" Luke said hoarsely. "My _family_ needs me, Aubé…" _At least I hope they do…_

"Of course we do, Luke," Aubé replied gently, then burst into a fit of giggles.

Luke arched an eyebrow, puzzled but momentarily bemused. "What is it?"

Aubé put a protective hand over her belly. "Speaking of need…"

"Again? We stopped at a fresher just before we entered the turbo-lift!"

She shrugged, and giggled again, a light hearted, giddy sound. "Sorry, Luke, I guess it's something we'll just have to get used to for the next few weeks. Didn't Leia tell you?"

Luke's expression darkened, and Aubé realized that she and Pem weren't the only _family_ that Luke had been absent from.

"We're here," Luke said abruptly, as the lift doors opened. "Come on, I promise this won't take long…"

**

Leia, _his_ Leia was in pain, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Han could hear the low murmurs of those around him. Young Toa was making odd gestures that the Healer Kay'leb followed blindly.

_I am his eyes, Master Solo,_ Toa's gentle voice echoed through his consciousness. _Your family is fine…_

He _had_ to look – he _wanted_ to look – he wanted to turn away, and yet he _had_ to, but he _couldn't_…

"I can't... Please..." Leia's voice seemed to come from far away, a different dimension maybe. "Oh, Goddess!" She cried.

"Just a little more, Princess," he heard himself say drowsily. "Just hang in there, sweetheart…"

He felt giddy, the world was going grey around him, and in that terrible instant, Han Solo realized he was about to faint.

**

Watching out of the window from what once was, and would soon again would be the Jedi Council chamber, Luke for himself growing, for want of a better word, _anxious_.

Aubé had retired to the fresher, and despite her assurances that she wouldn't be long, she'd actually been in the confines of the room for a considerable amount of time.

_You're over-reacting, Skywalker,_ he chastised himself inwardly. _Making a krayt dragon out of a sand worm. She's been through this all before and comes from a family of Healers, after all…_

"Uh, Luke?" her voice called from the refresher with a decidedly _un-Aubé-like_ quaver. "I think we have a little problem here…"

**

_Oh by the Gods and the seven hells,_ Han thought. _This can't be happening! I won't faint like a girl! I won't! I can't!_

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a hand shoot out and grab his arm, and in that instant, he felt a rush of sensation surge through his body. He felt _strong, powerful_. It was better than the strongest Glitterryll, better than _anything_ he had ever felt. He _could_ be strong for Leia! The Healer Kay'leb would see to that.

Brown eyes met milky white, and Han felt another surge of sensation. His jaw slackened and his eyes glazed as he felt himself falling into them.

_This is what it's like, really feeling the Force,_ he thought dreamily. _This man, this Healer… I can… I will… anything… just don't let it stop…_

Suddenly, Toa's voice – clear and harsh broke the connection broke with an almost electric shock.

"Kay'sa! _Enough!_" Toa said sharply. "Please…"

Han stood there for a moment, blinking stupidly as the Healer returned to his ministrations as if nothing had happened. He no longer felt light headed in the slightest, and yet…

"Quickly, General," Kay'leb snapped. Your daughter is coming _now…._

**

Aubé was milk pale as she staggered unceremoniously out of the fresher, her leggings half heartedly pulled up, and soaked to the bone.

"Luke?" she whimpered, "We seemed to have had a misfire…"

He stared at her, momentarily stupefied at the sight. "Bé? Is it… Is it the baby?"

"No! Of course not!" she snapped back irritably. "I hit the wrong leaver and got a front full of swamp water! What the hell do you think it is?"

Luke stood there, rooted to the spot. "Here? Now?"

"Apparently so," Aubé replied before doubling over with a groan, followed by a string of colourful Corellian curses. "Oh by the stars!"

In an instant, Luke was by her side, gently guiding her to one of the cushioned backless chairs and helping her to lie down. "It's all right Bé," he murmured. "Just relax…"

"Relax?" Aubé cried, grabbing the front of Luke's shirt, her eyes as wide as saucers. "Luke, I don't think you get it! He's coming – _now_!" She grimaced as a contraction seized her. "He's going to drop faster than a Stormtrooper at Corellian Lifeday party!"

"Bé…" Luke repeated soothingly. "It'll all right. We'll go back down the turbo-lift –"

"I'm _not_ going in there!" Aubé snapped. "The damn thing would probably stop midway down and –"

"OK, OK, so no turbo-lift," Luke said soothingly. "Let me have your com, and I'll have them come to us…" Here he paused, grimacing slightly. "Bé? Love?"

"What?"

"You're crushing my hand…"

"I could crush something else, you know! Right now, almost happily…"

"Where's your com-link?" Luke said, suddenly changing the subject. "Mine's temporarily water-logged."

"How?" Aubé asked, with another grimace. "Mine should be in my pocket…"

"Pem," Luke replied easily. "She was practicing a simple levitation when she saw you, and it fell into the fountain."

"So it's _my_ fault that you don't have a working com? No! Try the _other_ pocket, Luke!"

"I didn't say that!" came the frustrated reply. "Bé, it's not in here!"

"Of course it is!" Aubé cried, frightened, yet knowing he spoke the truth. "It has to be!"

"Aubé… Bé…" Luke soothed. "It's not. I can use the emergency com in the turbo lift…"

"Who will you call?"

"I don't know – anyone who answers I guess."

"But that could be _anyone_! Or worse, _no one!_"

"Someone will, eventually…"

"And if they _don't_?"

Luke slowly leaned down, and stroking an errant hair away from her fore-head, he whispered in her ear. "Then, we just have to do it ourselves…"

**  
"Han…" Leia called wearily. "The baby, Jaina…"

"She's fine, Sweetheart!" Han gibbered joyfully. "She's perfect! Just like her mother!"

It had happened so quickly, almost the moment the Healer had released him from that strange… _event_, Jaina had arrived, a small, squalling precious bundle. As Toa had instructed, Han had tipped her head down while a surprisingly gentle finger scooped a small mass out of her mouth. Now, lightly washed and wrapped in a soft blanket, Han found himself holding her in hands that seemed enormous.

"Can I see her?"

Slowly and carefully, Han made his way to Leia's side. "Just don't…" he gasped, feeling foolish. "She's so _small_…"

Tenderly, Kampher helped Leia sit up, and helped her position the baby for her first meal while Kay'leb and Toa prepared for the coming on the second twin.

"How long…" Han began only to have Toa interrupt.

"You should rest while you can, M'lady," he said gently. "It may be a while…"

"A _while_?" Han asked, incredulous. "What do you mean by 'a while'?"

"A child is not like a droid assembly line, General," Kay'leb said dryly. "It may be hours before the second twin arrives!"

A gentle Kampher broke in. "We'll leave you all to get acquainted," she said. "We won't be far, just in the next room…"

"Sure, sure," Han replied absently. "Next room and all… We'll be fine, won't we Leia?"

"All right," Kam agreed. "In the mean time, I want to see if I can raise Aubé and Luke. To be honest, I'm a little concerned, we haven't heard from them in hours…"

**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Luke had never felt so _helpless_ in his life. Aubé lay with her head in his lap, her eyes closed, her breath coming in short little gasps. She had vomited a little, and wept apologetically over that while Luke had wiped her eyes, murmuring gentle reassurances he barely felt.

He had thought about putting her into a Healing Trance but had disregarded the idea almost as soon as it had crossed his mind. She _hated_ to be manipulated, especially through the Force, and had confessed earlier that she had never forgiven her brother for doing it during the birth of the twins. _It was as if someone else had given birth, Luke,_ she'd said. _It felt so… wrong…_

It would only be for a little while, until we got help…

Please, Luke, anything but that…

But he _had_ done it once before, during the early part of her pregnancy, and the aftermath had been unpleasant to say the least. She had been angry and upset – enough to very nearly banish him from her bed for the night, the only saving factor coming in the middle of the night when she found herself 'too cold to sleep alone after all' – and he had resolved never to do it again.

At least, when he could be caught out.

Her eyelids fluttered open as another contraction seized her body. Brown eyes met blue, as she squeezed his hand, beckoning him to lean over, closer so she could whisper into his ear.

He kissed her fore-head, and bent over to listen.

"Luke…" she gasped. "Luke…"

He leaned closer, heeding an urge to turn his torso _away_ as he did so.

"No… No Healing trance…"

"Of course not, Aubé…" he replied softly, shifting further sideways as he did so. "Of course not…"

"Need it… yourself… if you do…"

Luke repressed a grin, understanding that it was primarily the pain that was talking, but mindful that the pain could do more than just talk, it could impose a lethal kick as well…  
"I know," he soothed. "Bé, what do you need me to do?"

Her eyes grew wide with terror. "What do you mean, _what do I need you to do?_ You don't _know_?"

"It's not something that was part of standard Jedi training, beloved. He's all right, I can feel it… Let go of your fear, Aubé… it'll be all right. Do you trust me?"

Aubé closed her eyes and sighed, relishing the moment between the pains. "Of course I do!"

Grinning now, Luke removed his shirt. "Well then, I guess we'd better get ready to welcome our son into the Galaxy…"

**

"Is she asleep?" Han said in what he hoped was an acceptably quiet voice. He turned a withering glare at the now closed door – for just 'being in the other room', those damned Jedi were making too much noise for his liking – but he chased the thought away for now. Baby Jaina had finished her first meal and now was nestled snuggly in her mother's embrace.

"I think so," the Princess whispered back. All of a sudden her face frowned, though, an involuntary gasp leaving her lips.

Her husband's mouth opened in a silent question. What...?

"I think it's starting again..." she answered with a sigh. "Would you mind...?"

Jumping out of his seat, Han Solo faced the second most difficult challenge of his life. At least when he had to catch her when she was coming out of her mother's womb, there had been a lot of helping hands – so to speak – around, but now... He was all on his own.

Leia's half smile turned into a broad one as she noticed the look of concentration washing over Han's face as he started to slip his large hands between her and the baby. The same look she had admired on his handsome face so many times as he steered the _Falcon_ expertly through asteroid fields or evaded a dozen enemy ships at the same time. The look he had when he knew the life of his friends depended on the steadiness and precision of his hands and was determined not to fail.

"Hey, why you crying? Do I call the healers..?" Han asked, returning full of pride after succesfully transporting sleeping Jaina to her first crib.

The new mother shook her head. "I love you."

The Corellian leaned in to give his wife a slightly wet and salty kiss. "´Love you too, sweetheart... You alright?"

"I'm fine, Han," Leia smiled drowsily. "The sooner, the better. Could do this a hundred times more I think. You however…"

"I'm fine," Han grunted, running his hand through his hair. Perhaps '_fine_' wasn't the word he was looking for. He felt… odd. Out of sorts…

_That damned Healer – Kay'leb,_ he thought. _What the hell happened back there?_ As fleeting memories came filtering back, his features darkened.

Frowning, Leia touched his arm. "Han, what' wrong?"

An angry retort that was about to fly from his lips was cut off by the sound of a shout and a large object crashing into a wall in the other room.

"What the..." Han muttered darkly, his hand automatically going to his blaster and releasing a string of colorful curses when he remembered that Kampher had made him leave it in the second room after the previous incident with the spybot. What ever it was, it wasn't _good_. "Stay here!" he called with out a backwards glance.

"Like I've got a choice?"

**

They had wandered around together, playing games of hide and seek like the little children they were, around the cold marble columns of the Temple, when Nico had suggested they could have an even better game if they went into the gardens.

"What's that?" Pem had asked, now decisively taking his hand. _Something_ felt amiss, but exactly what , she couldn't put her finger on. Part of it she knew was the fact that Nico, for all his Jedi training was fighting the urge to kiss her, but there was something else, something… elusive.

"It's a place where there are plants and trees from all over the Galaxy," Nico began, and trailed off. He closed his eyes. "Yes…" he murmured. "I sense it too! There's someone in a lot of pain, but it's not a _bad_ kind of pain…"

"Ma-mere!" Pem gasped with realization. "My Ma-mere is having her _baby_! It's just her and Pay-pa, though!" Her eyes grew wide. "Nico! Ma-mere might need a Healer!"

"I can com Master Gi," Nico said reaching for his com, grateful for the chance to look away. "But where are they?"

"Pay-pa said he was going to take Ma-mere to the Council Chamber if she would go," Pem said, a slight tremble to her voice. "I know I shouldn't be scared, but I am, Nico!"  
Green eyes met blue, and suddenly, Nico stood up taller, prouder. He was a _Jedi Healer_ in training, and even at 10 years old, he _knew_ that he would be brave enough for both of them. He _would_ be a _great Jedi_ one day, he could see it in _those_ eyes.

_Those beautiful, blue eyes…_

"Oh Nico!" Pem cried, throwing her arms around him and kissed him, firmly and fully on the lips. It wasn't a graceful kiss, or a skilled one, but never the less, it was a kiss.

A first one…


	8. Chapter 8

**Sailing Little Boats**

Chapter 8

An angry retort that was about to fly from his lips was cut off by the sound of a shout and a large object crashing into a wall in the other room, and with almost Jedi-like agility, Han fairly leapt over the preparation table and into the other room. The ear-blasting screech of an alarm cut off another round of Corellian curses - for once, not all of them emanating from Han's lips.

But it wasn't only the _sound_ that had stopped him in his tracks, it was the scene before his eyes. He stopped dead in his tracks, feeling as if he were watching a holo-thriller in slow motion, astounded.

Healer Kay'leb was standing in the middle of the room, hands extended as if he were warding off a great tide. Kampher was leaning against the wall, pressing the alarm button. A collection of people and droids lay in a messy heap on the floor, right inside the opened door. _Holo-cams_ … the word filtered it's way into Han's shocked brain. _Holo-cams and reporters – they got through some how!_

But it was Toa, the _gentlest_ one of the Healer's couple that shocked him the most. In his hands was _his_ blaster, held steadily and pointed at the pile of living rubble before him.

"General Solo," he said softly, not taking his eyes away from the intruders for even a moment. "I respectfully ask that you move aside. I may not be too acquainted with your weapon of choice, but I know how to pull a trigger, and do not wish to harm you…"

Again, Han Solo felt as if he had been pulled into a different dimension. He felt definitely out of his element. His wife in pain, babies being born before his very eyes, Jedi playing with his mind, peaceful healers handling weapons like they've done it all their lives... Then his eyes met the honey-colored eyes of Master Healer Kampher and something – a voice – filled his mind.

_Let go... We're here only to help you..._

With just the smallest hesitation, he stepped aside.

**

"Come on, Bé," Luke called soothingly. "He's almost here!"

"Luke, I can't…" Aubé moaned, throwing her arm over her eyes. "I can't…"

"Yes you can!" Luke cried, barley able to contain his excitement. "Just a little more!"

"No, I can't Luke! Oh, Goddess!" she cried, only to have it intertwined with the whimpers of their newborn son.

"Bé! He's here!" Luke gasped with astonishment, wiping the baby's face and mouth with the sleeve of his shirt. "Our _son_ is here!"

"Is he all right?" Aubé sighed, catching her breath at last. "Let me see him!"

"Two eyes, ten toes, two meters of manliness! He's all there!" Luke grinned as he wrapped the infant in his shirt before handing him to Aubé.

"Two _meters_?" Aubé repeated, astonished, as she pushed herself into a sitting position. "Are you sure he's not Solo's boy?"

"The blond hair says otherwise!" Luke grinned. He felt higher than an air whale as he placed his new son into his mother's arms. "How are _you_ feeling?"

"Cold…" Aubé murmured, positioning the baby so he could nurse. "Especially my lower half."

"I think there are some robes in the closet there…"

"Could have used those earlier, you know!"

"Well, we were kinda busy…"

"_We?_"

"Ok, Ok… _you_ were busy. I was just in the audience…" Luke muttered under his breath, yet still suppressing a grin. "Just hang tight…"

He returned a few moments later with not one but several robes draped over his arm, but as he tucked the first of many over his wife, he paused and looked towards the vacant lift doors.

"Luke, what is it?" Aubé asked, wide eyed.

"Not _what,_ Bé," Luke replied softly. "But _who_…"

**

"Han! What happened out there?" The Princess asked frantically, all ready halfway out of her bed when the healer's team plus her husband entered the delivery room again.

"Don't worry, Leia, the kid here has everything under control..."

"What's important is what's about to happen now, Madame," Kampher interrupted. "Kay, I think..."

The new mother suddenly doubled over in pain at the same time that baby Jaina released a loud wail. "Oh, Goddess, help me..." she gasped in terror.

_By the Gods, what now?_ Han thought, no longer concerned with the trembling mass that had been pushed unceremoniously outside the door that was now again locked. Although he had never been a religious man, Han suddenly found himself praying. _Oh Goddess, let my son and my wife be all right…_


	9. Chapter 9

**Part 9**

Han Solo watched with horror the blood spreading on the white sheets. For the love of the Goddess, that was Leia's blood!

Before he had time to react though, Kay'leb Canaille was barking orders non stop.

"Princess, I need you to lay down and get as relaxed as you can. If a contraction comes, don't do anything; Toa and I need to see where the blood comes from... Mother, notify the other team, just in case we need a surgery..."

"Surgery?"

"Not now, General, let me work..." the Jedi Healer answered.

"Hey, where're you taking my daughter?" Han shouted anyway, noticing that Kampher had taken the still crying Jaina and was ready walk with her out of the room.

"General, she's upset enough by all this and we need to focus on the Princess... She will well tended to in the nursery..."

The Corellian smuggler hesitated, torn between his two duties. At last, he pulled out his comm unit. "Wait," he ordered Kampher. "Chewie, get your furry behind here, I need you!" He growled.

A louder growl that almost made him jump in the air answered him. *You were saying...?*

To Han's relief, Chewbacca was standing right there in doorway to the suite's waiting room. "How did you...?" He said, pulling both the older Healer and his friend away from the delivery room.

The giant Wookiee shrugged. *You weren't answering your comm. I just walked in and nobody stopped me...*

"I'll have a long conversation with the security chief after this...!" Solo grounded his teeth. "Alright, we have sort of an emergency here..."He cut his friend's further questions with a gesture. "Chewie, Healer Kampher is taking Jaina to the nursery, please go with her... I'll stay here with Leia."

*Jaina?* The mighty Wookiee inspected with interest the tiny bundle in the healer's arms. *Hey, congratulations, pal... *

"Yeah, yeah, save that for later... Now go!"

With a relieved sigh, Han went back and grabbed Leia's pale hand. Her skin felt cold and clammy, something he knew was a sure sign that she was loosing blood too quickly. "Han," she whispered, and her husband felt her tremble with fear. "Jaina..."

"Don't worry, Chewie and Kampher are taking care of her..."

"If I..." Her eyes were flooded with tears. "Don't let anything happen to this baby..."

"I won't, Sweetheart, I promise," he whispered back, kissing her brow. He glanced up to the Jedi Healers. They had their hands spread on Leia's exposed belly and their faces had a look of deep concentration. Kampher had reentered the room and waited respectfully one step behind her son.

"Yes! Good job, Toa, keep it like that..." Kay'leb said suddenly, a small smile twisting his tight lips.

"They're ready when you are, Kay..." her mother briefed him.

"I..." His blind eyes searched for the Princess and her husband's eyes, and seemed to find them. "There's been a disruption in the placenta, that's where the blood comes from. Toa has the hemorrhage under control, for now, but this baby needs to be born _now_ or we risk loosing both of you. Do you understand?"

Both Han and Leia nodded before they remembered the Healer could not see them. "Yes," Han croaked.

"Alright, you have two choices..." He made a small pause. "We can have him out by surgery, and that will be quick but not _that_ quick, or you can trust Toa and myself and let us try something and have this child squealing and safe in less time. I'm afraid the Princess will need some surgery anyway but the risk will be less once the baby is out of the way. What is your choice?"

"What if you fail?"

The question had come from Leia. Her voice had become suddenly cold and firm, cutting the quiet air like a knife. Healer Canaille did not flinch.

"If we don't succeed, we'll have the other team here in less than ten seconds and we'll follow the usual proceeding for these cases. The delay won't affect you or the baby as long as Toa keeps his control... but we can't say for how long. We're loosing precious time -" he pressed.

"Toa?" Han asked in the gentlest of whispers.

"Kaysa and I will do our best not to fail you, General, Milady... Please trust us," Toa whispered back, his eyes closed and his face relaxing somewhat, like Han had seen Luke do when he fell into deep meditation.

The former smuggler and the Princess exchanged a glance that seemed to last forever.

"Do it..." She ordered. Her husband nodded.

"Alright," Kay'leb took the lead again. "Princess, while Toa keeps the bleeding under control, I'm going to help your baby out. His sister has done half of the work all ready and I'm going to do the rest. But I'll need all my concentration to not harm him and I won't be able to help you manage the pain like last time. I want you to get ready for this, because it's going to be rough. Are you with me?"

"I'm ready," Leia Organa Solo answered without faltering. "Do what you need to do."

"Great. Mother, you'll receive the... How are you calling him?" His hands kept roaming Leia's belly, as if he was taking some kind of measurements. "I can't keep calling him baby, he'll consider myself his worse enemy after this..."

"Jacen," Han provided.

"Ok. Mother, I need you to check Jacen as soon as he's out, General, you're with the Princess... Are we ready?"

**

"Ma-mere? Pay-pa? Are you there?" Pemberian's voice echoed from the lift's com. "Did I get it fixed?" A few muttered curses, most of them exclusively Corellian but a few choice Outer Rim, and for a brief moment, Luke absently thought about having a word with 'Uncle Han' about what he was saying around his easily impressionable little girl.

"Pem?" Luke and Aubé chorused together. "We're here, where are _you?_"

Breathless with excitement now, Pem called back. "I think we're two levels below you, Pay-pa! There a was burny stink coming from the control panel when we got here, and the lift didn't work so we took the stairs but I think I fixed it now! Just one sec!"

A few moments later, the lift doors closed, and the hum of machinery thrummed through the room, and within minutes, Luke found himself with an armful of giggling, happy little girl.

"Pay-pa! I brought a Healer for Ma-mere!" she began, but her voice trailed off as she stared at her mother and the newborn baby suckling at her breast.

Now that he had stepped out of the shadow, Luke took in the visage and 'Healer' that had captivated his little girl. _He's smaller than I thought,_ Luke thought to himself absently _Older too, probably…_ He didn't voice these opinions aloud, however, more intent on getting his wife back down to the Healer's center, and taking in the moment of peace between them.

"Ma-mere," Pem said softly, "It's my brother! What's his name?"

Luke cast his eyes back to Aubé, who was stroking the top of the baby's head. They had discussed several potential names for their unseen son, but now, none of them seemed to fit.

"I don't know," Aubé murmured softly. "I chose _your_ name, and Tam's… Ask your father…"

"What's his _name_, Pay-pa?" Pemberian whispered. "He needs a name!"

Nico, Pemberian's companion bowed deeply. "I will bring help," and as quietly as a shadow, the boy disappeared back into the turbo lift, barely noticed.

"Pay-pa?" Pem pressed, gently touching the baby's hand with her finger. "Do you know it, yet?"

Luke squatted down, and when he spoke again, it was like a whispered prayer.

"_Ben_," he murmured. "His name is Ben…"

**

If Han thought that Jaina's birth had been shocking and painful – for both Leia and him – he realized now that he had been sadly mistaken.

The aftermath of it all had left him feeling a bit drowsy, like a bad hangover about to strike. He had found himself suddenly alone in the suite, sinking in one of the couches, his head hanging between his knees and his fingers messing his already messed up hair a bit more.

His mind was still a chaos of images and sounds, sensations and feelings that started to fade and then resurged anew as he tried to recall exactly what he had lived in the past few hours. He wondered if any of it had been real or if it was just some kind of twisted nightmare from which he was about to wake up to find his wife sleeping peacefully and still very pregnant at his side.

A string of faces flew behind his closed eyelids. Kay'leb's mouth alternatively cursing and coaxing, talking softly to Jacen as if he was guiding him through his first flying excercise; Toa's face bathed in sweat; Leia's eyes dilated by terror...What was surely real was the numbness in his hand that was starting to painfully disappear. The hand that Leia had unmercifully squeezed while her white teeth drew blood from her ashen-colored lips, her unnatural self-control keeping her from moving or screaming through the ordeal that was their son's birth.

She had looked so small and frail, so incredible young. So strong.

He now realized that this must have been exactly how she looked during her torture in the Death Star, so many years ago. How the old son of a gundark had failed to recognize her for what she was, _who_ she was in that moment was beyond his understanding. How could he not _see_. How could he not _love_ her.

At last the baby had been born. Jacen. Probably the ugliest baby he had ever seen, poor little guy, covered in blood from head to toe, his skull frightfully deformed by the strain of the birth. There had been only time for him to kiss his forehead and place him for a few short seconds on Leia's chest before Kampher whisked him away to be further checked on. And then they had taken Leia away too, and he had been left to wait.

Wait. Never his strongest suit.

The door swished open.

He jumped out of the couch and confronted the couple of tired looking Jedi Healers, Toa and Kay'leb.

"My… My son!" Han stammered. "Leia…"

"They are fine, General Solo," Toa said smoothly in his gentle way, reassuring him instantly. "Master Kampher will return both children to their mother to bond soon – she will wake up in a short while. You may join them if you wish…"

_If I wish?_ Some of the old bravado crept back into Han's demeanor. "Nah, I was thinking about running up Luke, and going out for an ale instead," he said bitingly. "Of course I want to see them!"

The other Healer began to laugh. "Of course, General!" Kay'leb replied, merriment dancing in his sightless eyes. "As for Master Skywalker, you may actually get your wish sooner than you think. We've just received another call on the secure com, and I must prepare the other room for our newest guest after all…"

"Aubé? Now?" Solo asked, his eyes going round with surprise.

"Not _now_, General," Healer Canaille provided. "It seems that we all became uncles again about an hour ago," he shrugged, smiling impishly. "And I'll buy _you_ that ale if you guess where my darling sis chose to give birth!" The Corellian finished, now laughing openly.

Toa shook his head afectionatelly and sighed.

Han Solo tried to imagine what kind of trouble Luke and that wild wife of his could have gotten into, but finally gave up. _Anything_ was possible with the kid.

He released a short laugh himself but then his face sobered again. "Another day, perhaps... I guess I owe _you_ a couple of kegs anyway, Master Canaille, Healer Toa," he said almost formally.

Then, with a quick glance to his companion, he ofered his hand to shake first to the blind Jedi.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Pem!"

"Uncle Han!"

Pemberian Canaille Skywalker jumped gracefully away from her modified A-Wing and quickly walked across the landing pad towards the graying man that waited for her, with his arms crossed over his chest.

"That was some landing," Han Solo proudly, his head shaking as to belie the amusement in his eyes. "But I bet Coruscant Control won't be very happy about it," he said "Where d'ya learn that, kid?"

"From you, my dear Uncle," she laughed before being enfolded in a crushing embrace. "It's been so long," she sighed.

"Almost a year, kid, almost a year..." The older man agreed, slipping his arm around his niece's waist and guiding her towards the main lifts. "Your old man is still in a meeting with the Council and your mom is up there," he lifted his chin to the sky, "making a new batch of cadets sweat in their cockpits."

"I know, I crossed paths with them... Gave'em something to think about too!" Pemberian laughed. "Some of those little hotshots deserved to have their minds wiped for thinking such nasty things about their instructor..."

"And that's why she wanted me to teach you..." Han said with a wry grin. "She said she'd get too distracted trying to teach you some traffic manners. It's all part of growing up Kid, As if I hadn't hated my first flight instructor too!"

Laughing, they started the slow descent into the main building of the Jedi Temple.

"What about my cousins?" Pem asked, catching her breath at last. "What are they destroying these days?"

"Besides half the hearts in the city? Boy, I think Jaina's making my hair grow gray at a double rate... She probably wants to break your record before she turns twenty-one or something..."

"I wasn't so bad!" The young woman protested half-heartedly.

"You think that because your dad is blonde and the gray doesn't show," the old smuggler mocked her. "He's much more relaxed now that you seemed to have settled down..."

"Not quite, Uncle Han..."

"What happened?"

"Nothing, don't worry... It's just... It's still a new thing..."

"A new thing?" Han pressed gently. "The same _new thing_ that's been going on for the last three years?"

Pem nodded. "Yeah, he wants to get married I think..."

"You _think_?" Han echoed, momentarily considering reaching for the 'stop' button.

"OK, OK," Pem admitted. "He _did_ ask..."

"And?"

Pem sighed, and Han knew she hadn't mentioned it to her father yet, the man she still called _Pay-pa_ in her heart. "I just don't know if I'm ready just yet..."

"Ok, when you _do_ decide you're ready, you just give us a fair warning, will ya, kid? Your Aunt Leia will be very pissed if you don't let her organize your wedding. Ask your mother if you don't believe me."

"What about the boys? And Uncle Chewie?" Pemberian said suddenly, changing the subject. "What are they doing these days? I saw Jacen in Corellia a couple of months ago..."

"Yeah, he's doing well there under Toa's supervision..." Han replied, picking up the lead. "He says he'll be an excellent Healer. Who would have said that, the day he was born... He said he'd be able to take a few days off to spend his birthday here with Jaina and Ben, as always. Chewie took the Falcon to Kashyyyk to bring his family here and is picking up Anakin and his Master in the way back, so we'll have an almost full crew by the end of the week. "

"And how's Ben doing?" Pem asked, visibly relaxing. "Is Ma-mere still very mad at him? She said that she wasn't but..."

"Yeah, she's trying to hide the disappointment, but you know her. I think they're just too alike, every time they try to talk to each other they turn it into a who-is-more-stubborn competition... She'll come around; they love each other too much not to. Plus, Leia says your brother has a real talent for organizing people and motivating them... Maybe it's not just another of his rebel whims. Maybe he really wasn't meant to be a Jedi after all."

The dark-haired woman sighed. Ben Skywalker, named after two of the most famous Jedi, son of the founder of the New Jedi Order, born right in the middle of the Council Chamber, did not want to become a Jedi. Maybe the Force did have a sense of humor after all.

Passing virtually unnoticed by the many visitors and residents, Jedi and non-Jedi alike, they had arrived in the Room of a Thousand Fountains. Assembled by the largest one, a young man, though clearly still in his teenage years, was teaching a group of five-olders how to sail their little flimsy boats using only the Force. The kids raced each other and cheered when they managed to sink their teacher's vessel.

"Remember that, Pem?" Han Solo smiled. "You loved to play that game with the younglings..."

"I do," Pem sighed wistfully, and then her whole demeanor lit up as she spied a familiar face across the room. "By the Force!" She exclaimed. "Is that little Auryn? I think he grew taller than you, Uncle Han!"

"Sis!" The blonde giant cheered, barging towards them and tossing his sister over his shoulder. "I told you I would be soon able to do this!"

"Put me down, Ryn, you big gundark!"

"Where, here?" He asked innocently, balancing her over the edge of the fountain.

"Ryn! Quit!" she squealed, pounding him on the back. "If you don't know it off _right now_ I'll get Kay to convince every Art Critic in the Core that your work blows grassers!"

"Oh come on, sis, you _know_ that it's not my _work_ that – "

"Don't even start that again, Auryn Owen Skywalker!" a new voice called from across the crowded room. "Kay'leb might have thought it funny to announced to the Galaxy that you were leaving your promised mate for a group of Naboo-boys, but I don't!" The owner of the voice was a petite lithe blond woman, with a full pretty mouth and green eyes that snapped with annoyance. "Or maybe I will instead!"

"Fye!"

"Fy'lo!" The brother and sister cried in unison, as Han looked on, bemused.

"When did you get in?" Auryn murmured softly as he gently lowered his sister to the ground and took the newcomer into his arms tenderly. "I thought you weren't getting in until tonight?"

"I couldn't wait to see you," she murmured softly, any traces of anger melting away as she gazed into his blue eyes. "I have a room at the Ambassador..." she leaned in for a kiss when a loud, false cough stopped them. The couple pulled away, suddenly embarrassed.

"Good to see you again, Fy'lo," Han said with a grin as he stuck his hand out for a shake. "Ryn, I think it's the younglings time to lunch."

"You're right, Uncle Han. I'll drop them with their monitor and we'll join you two at the refectory."

"Great, kid."

Han and Pem watched as the young couple gathered the younglings and cleaned up all the wet flimsy. "Are you coming, girl?"

"I'd like to go for a moment to the Fire Room," she whispered. "It's Tam's anniversary today..."

"Oh... Shavit, kid, I forgot... I'm sorry, now I understand why you mother didn't want to celebrate your homecoming today."

"It's never an easy day for her... It will never be. But I understand. You're welcome to come, if you want."

Han Solo followed his niece across the Room of a Thousand Fountains towards a more secluded one, used only by the Jedi for ceremonies that required a certain privacy. It was a simple room, big enough to contain a couple of hundreds of beings. In the middle, surging from an old fashioned metal grate, a flame that to his knowledge had never stopped to burn since Luke had lighted it some twenty years before in memory of the old Jedi.

As the young woman sat down in a meditative position, he took the opportunity to observe her at will. As she matured, she physically looked like her mother more than ever, even if from time to time and under certain lights an uncanny resemblance to Leia came apparent, something they had both probably inherited from Padmé Amidala. The eyes, though, and the rest of her, were pure Luke.

Even if she had had a less than conventional upbringing from the start, with painful experiences in her childhood that had left deep scars, and maybe because of all that, she had never lost the that joy of living that was her trademark. Just like some wide-eyed farmboy he had met in a dusty cantina more than half a life back.

He knew, from his experience as a father, how powerful and deep the bond between Force sensitive twins could be. Only several years after Jaina and Jacen had been born he came to understand how much it must have affected Leia and Luke to grow up apart from each other, and how confusing it must have been when they had been reunited, not knowing who they really were to each other. But Pem... Pem had lost much more than a few years with her twin. And so had Aubé and Luke.

For the first time in many years he found himself thinking of the pregnancies Leia had lost before Jaina and Jacen, and later Anakin, had come into their lives. Was there some meaning, some purpose to it all? Or was it all just like the kid's little flimsy boats back in the other room, some of them sailed and some of them sank, impulsed by some Force none of them really understood and that was all to it?

Pemberian Skywalker smiled, though her eyes remained closed.

Before Han's amazed eyes, the flame took the shape of a boat.

_Yeah,_ a voice seemed to whisper in his mind, _just sailing little boats..._

Pem opened her blue eyes and winked at him.

**FINIS**


End file.
